Caught
by nolapeep
Summary: Danny knew. He knew her secret. He knew she was just a sappy little fourteen-year-old with a hard cover. Danny was never going to be able to look at her the same way again! She knew it; he knew it. They both knew it. ...and they both knew one more thing.


A book is referred to in this one-shot. I will have you know that it doesn't belong to me. _Heart's Delight_ is owned by Per Nilsson and I only rented it from the public library. Sue me, I will have you not. Thank you for reading this.

God Bless.

* * *

The candles surrounded her room, the small lights brimming with radiance. The air smelled like cinnamon and apples, the intoxicating fume drowning Sam as she walked into the room. She began to make her way to the bathroom quietly, but stopped at her doorway. Sam turned around and smiled as she studied her room once more, very pleased with herself. The candles made the lighting look dim, just the way she liked it. It gave Sam this isolated and warm feeling inside her stomach. Like it was her and _only _her who was allowed to have this moment. The cozy smell and lighting gave her the sense of security. After a few more moments of reflecting on this ponder, she turned on her heels and wandered into her bathroom, the one right down the hall.

Closing the door behind her, Sam locked it then turned to her reflection in the mirror. The girl smiled at herself then tied her raven black hair in a messy ponytail, for she didn't want her hair getting in the way of her changing. Tucking the loose strands of hair behind her ears, she primped herself to the satisfaction level of being nice and neat, but not out of control. After the ponytail was finally complete, Sam opened the cabinet to her right and took out some clothes. She laid the pajama pants and shirt out in front of herself, slipping one arm through the sleeve of her current shirt. Soon enough, the girl finally managed to squeeze herself out of the clothes she was wearing. Not hesitating a second more, Sam quickly changed into her set of nightclothes as she pondered about the situation she was in.

It was the perfect day for a night like this. With Tucker being sick and Danny being out of town, Sam had the evening all to herself. Tucker was sick with the chicken pox, for once in his life. Sam never had it, but she knew it must be painful because of all the gossip and talk about it. It was nothing more than a multitude of red dots covering your body that could ruin your week – even month. And with Danny being gone… God, if Danny ever saw her during her free time, Sam would surely freak. It was her time, and her time alone. She was glad that Danny was out with his parents on a ghost-hunting spree. It was funny to think of the many different ways to annoy Danny – sometimes his parents treated him like he didn't know squat about ghosts. And he was one himself! Anyway, back to the story.

Sure, she could travel down the staircase in just a few minutes and watch an endless amount of movies not yet on DVD, or she could take what she had tonight for granted and milk it for all it would be worth. Sam smiled to herself as she concluded with the second option. Filing her clothes into the cabinet above her head, she checked herself in the mirror once more before unlocking the bathroom door and turning the handle.

Checking out her room once more, Sam walked into her bedroom, shutting the door behind her. Breathing in the sweet aroma in the air, she smiled to herself as she closed her eyes. She made her way over to her comfy, cozy bed and jumped onto his. She inhaled slowly, digging her head deeper into her soft pillow. Sam lay there for a few minutes before pulling herself to the side of her bed. She rolled on her side to her nightstand. Soon enough, Sam was sitting up, searching through her belongings for a particular one. Sam squealed quietly as she picked up a book she was recently reading, _Heart's Delight_ by Per Nilsson. She rolled back to a comfortable position, one where she was propped up against a pillow that leaned on the wall. Sam squirmed in her seat for a few more seconds before finally opening up her book and turning to a dog-eared page.

"_Do you play?" He nodded toward a guitar case that was leaning against the wall.  
_"_Mmm-hmm. But come in and sit down now. Or are you afraid?"  
_"_Pshah," he sniffed. "After all, I've been in thousands of girls' rooms."_

Sam never noticed the grin growing on her face as she scanned the page, taking everything in slowly. She wouldn't mind admitting she was a slow reader – everyone in her family was like that. Not that any Manson actually took the time to read, of course. Besides Grandma Manson. She was different. In everything, actually. But, whatever. Yet, let me warn you, a young halfa was on his way to Sam's house that very instant.

o.O.o.O.o.O.o

**Forty-five Minutes Earlier:**

"Danny!" Maddie's voice echoed off the hallway's walls, soon to be heard in Danny's room. "Daniel, where are you?"

"You're sick?!" Danny seemed to yell into the receiver. He grabbed his head in agitation. "What? Since when…?"

"I don't know. We're trying to figure out who got me infected, but I still feel miserable. Man, I just couldn't go to school, today." Danny heard Tucker laugh on the other line, which turned into a deep and rumbling cough. Soon after, Tucker sounded like he was having a total choking fit. He coughed and wheezed for a few minutes before finally falling silent.

Danny chuckled then asked, "You done?" Danny heard Tucker stifle a snort on the phone.

"Sure," He replied. "Oh, by the way, have you ever thought about it?"

"Thought about what?"

"Sam was by herself, today. We weren't at school; She was alone. Haha." Danny felt his eyes grow wide as he pictured Sam. He saw her in his mind, head on desk and everything. He grinned as he asked Tuck, "Have you talked to her yet?"

"No, not yet. I was going to, just now, but then you called."

"Oh, it's okay. I think I'm gonna go check up on her." Danny could hear Tucker smile.

"Now, don't harass her, boy," the teenager managed to say before Danny hung up. When he finally did, Danny rolled his eyes, placing the phone on his desk. He sighed, turning into his alter ego, Danny Phantom.

"Danny, where are you?!" Danny listened to his mom yell once more before flying out his window.

o.O.o.O.o.O.o

**Back to Sam's room:**

_What is he doing now? Pretending to be a ghost?  
He's sitting on his bed with a sheet over his head. There are strange noises coming from in there. Is he crying again? If he keeps this up, he might end up in the _Guinness Book of World Records: _Most tears shed in one night._

Sam's eyebrows were knitted together in total concentration, her pupils gliding over the many words printed in ink. She pursed her lips together in a full line as she watched the sentences dance in her imagination, as if she was watching the whole scene in front of her. But, she never noticed the fourteen-year-old boy, the one floating outside her window.

_Then Mom opened his door a crack and a narrow strip of light fell into the room.  
_"_Are you asleep?" she whispered.  
__He shut his eyes and pretended to be asleep, again.  
Mom came into the room and walked over to his bed.  
She put her hand on his forehead. Her soft Mom hand.  
_"_I love you," she whispered.  
After a little while, she left the room._

Sam didn't mind the stray tear rolling down her cheek. She just kept on reading. Why, may you ask? Well, one reason is because no one was watching. Sam was always self-conscious of how she appeared to others. She didn't want to be the girl who had a ridiculously soft spot for fictional romance books, _especially_ with her Gothic reputation. She was supposed to seem tough and hard, to look invulnerable. But, when she was alone, none of that nonsense mattered.

_Ugh, he thought. Stupid Mom. You've watched too many Hollywood movies.  
_I love you I love you I love you I love you.  
_They say that all the time in movies.  
__They don't really mean anything when they say it.  
__No. I've experienced love, he thought. _

Sam was crying, now. Not silently letting tears fall, not squeezing her eyes shut and occasionally a teardrop would fall. No, she was crying, as in heaving and shaking and tears pouring out her eyes. As in, tearing up so badly, she couldn't even see the page. Sam rested her head against the wall, still sobbing. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, trying to calm down. After a few minutes being quiet, Sam finally had managed to fall silent – no tears, no heaving, and no shaking. It was just her, just Sam, lying in her bed with a book tucked under her arm. He face stained with tears, Sam closed her eyes and let the last one fall. The last tear.

_Tiink! Tiink! Tiink! _ Sam jumped to the sound of a fingernail tapping the glass of her window. Suddenly, she found herself on the ground, the covers over her head and twisted around her body. She jerked up, shedding the sheets off her and snapped her head in the direction of the noise. She looked at the window and squinted her eyes, trying to focus on the faint reflection behind it. There, Sam sat, red and puffy-eyed, nose running, her face pale and stained with tears. She gasped, stunned. There, behind the window, floated her best friend, Danny.

Danny smiled sheepishly as Sam hid behind the side of her bed, silently panicking._ Oh my God… Oh my God… Danny is here. At my window. Oh, crap. Did he see me?! Oh, please, no… No, no, no, no, no, no! _Sam swatted at her face, trying to make it look like nothing had happened. She smoothed out her hair behind the bed, trying to make sure (without a mirror) that she didn't look like a hope-less, cooped-up, without-a-life romantic. Finally, Sam made her way to her window. She unlocked it, then opened the window slowly. She stepped aside, her arm in a gesture showing that Danny was invited in. He hesitantly glided in, his heart racing.

"So," Sam started, trying to give him the most dangerous glare she's ever given."How long were you watching?" Danny couldn't look her in the eye, and Sam took that as a sign. "How _long_, Daniel?" Sam strained to not grit her teeth. _Stop it, Sam. Stop it! Don't let him ruin your night._

Danny rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "I was just...I was...I..." He looked into Sam's eyes and saw anger. Wait, not anger -- just disappointment. "I got back on my trip early, and I wanted to check up on you." Danny sighed, relived. It felt good to get the truth off his chest. Sam's stare softened as she inspected Danny more closely. He was just checking up. Not spying... He was just invading her privacy -- her alone time -- by accident. That's all.

Sam patted Danny's arm, leading his out. "Thanks, I appreciate it. Really." She smiled, then and continued, "You were just at the wrong place at the wrong time. Just don't do that again." Sam chuckled then added, "This was my _alone _time." Danny nodded.

"I understand, really." Danny did a double take of Sam's room, then headed out her window. Sam exhaled sharply, sliding down the wall.

Sam grabbed her face in thought. Danny knew. He knew her secret. He knew she was just a sappy little fourteen-year-old with a hard cover. Danny was never going to be able to look at her the same way again! Gosh. She knew it; He knew it. They both knew it. Sam also knew something else. She knew Danny knew something else. They both knew one more thing.

She was caught.


End file.
